Ross MacKay tries the Ram 1500 Limited.
Crew, tools, toys and more – the Ram pickup range has few peers when it comes to moving our stuff.
It was the 6.75-litre Cummings turbo-diesel straight six – complete with is outrageous 1000+Nm peak torque output and class-leading braked towing capacity of close to 7000kg – that was the first cab off rank it’s the petrol-fuelled 5.7-litre Hemi V8-powered 1500 line which has accounted for the lion’s share of sales.
Not bad sales numbers too: 7,000 or more across Australia and New Zealand.
Helpfully there are a number of different versions from the basic Ram 1500 Express (available in two different cab size/deck length combinations, Quad and Crew), through the slightly more off-road orientated Warlock to an up-specced Laramie and finally the subject of this test, the Limited.
The US website car.com has just named the 1500 Limited its Luxury ‘Car’ of the Year.
The 1500 Limited has a wide range of features that can be expected to appear on other models.
This pickup retains a strong familial silhouette but can be distinguished from existing models in Ram’s 1500 range by a new, taller, flatter bonnet and broader, wider, and flatter grille with slim, narrow LED headlights.
It adds up to a sharper, more contemporary look, the impact heightened by the slick black-on-black colour scheme of the test truck. The matching black-on-black effect of the leather-trimmed seats and upholstery on the inside is accentuated by a blacked-out finish to pretty much everything that either moves, including the 22 inch rims and automatic ‘fold-out-then-back-in-again’ footboards.
To drive, it is very much the same. Climb in for instance, and the overall feeling is of room and space. Hectares of space.
It’s this sheer spaciousness which I noticed more than some of the many of the hi-tech systems built into the range-topping 1500 Limited. The centre console/armrest is so big that when I tucked my phone into one of its trays, it disappeared. I had to dig really deep to find it again when I had reached my destination.
The seats are some of the most comfortable I have ever sat in, particularly over longer distances. They lack the ultimate side-on bolster support of – say – those fitted to Ford’s Ranger Raptor, but the heated and ventilated driver and front passenger chairs can be personalised electrically – fore, aft, up-and down – 10 different ways, and they include some fairly serious lumbar action should your lower back need the extra support.
The two front and outer two seats ‘out back’ also feature three-way heating and ventilation and the leather-trimmed steering wheel is also both up-and-down and in-and-out adjustable, making it ridiculously easy to find a perfect driving ‘sweet-spot.’
Because it uses the larger ‘Crew’ cab and shorter 1.7m tray there is also massive leg room for rear seat passengers. So much room that the 60/40 rear seat back is reclinable.
The auto retractable step makes it child’s play getting in and out.
Up front the Limited has a huge, vertically – oriented 12-inch tablet/touchscreen in the middle of the dashboard.
Set up features and functions on the screen before you leave home.
There’s a 900-watt Harmon Kardon premium sound system and an Active Noise Cancelling package that keeps cabin noise down to just 67.1 dB.
Under the bonnet – hood – there’s a mild hybrid system that works alongside the Ram’s existing Multi Displacement System (MDS).
Hats off to Ram for putting effort into addressing fuel consumption.
Used ‘enthusiastically’ (or when towing) a 1500 Limited can use up to 16-18 L/100kM (13-14 mpg in the old money).
The mild hybrid assist and MDS can improve that to 12l/100km (or 19.7 mpg).
I got to really appreciate the fully damped soft release tailgate and the fold-out step which helps the user bridge the not inconsiderable gap between the ground and the black spray-on lining of the tray bed.
My abiding memory of the new Limited, in fact, is one of the smooth, effortless way this most luxurious of Ram pickups went about its business. Ride – on seal, gravel, and even rutted grass-based farm track – is the same; excellent in a long travel/well-damped way.
Steering feel is direct without ever being ‘darty’ and ride height and ride remain the same when towing, thanks largely to the multi-link coil rear suspension and the ‘active-level’ airbag package on all four corners.
The Limited comes here with a four-star ANCAP safety rating.
Which brings me to my conclusion: despite all the hoopla and hype surrounding utes and the Government’s proposed ‘Clean Car Levy’ (aka the ute ‘tax’) the ‘larger than life’ Ram 1500 Limited will find a ready owner audience in New Zealand.
